Home Staging Tips for Home Sellers:
"Get Ready To Move -- Start Packing"

Try looking at your house
"THROUGH THE BUYER'S EYES" as though you've never seen it or been
there before. Any time or money invested on the following will bring
back more money in return, and hopefully a faster
sale.

INSIDE:1. Clear all unnecessary objects from
furniture throughout the house. Keep decorative objects on the
furniture restricted to groups of 1, 3, or 5 items. 2. Clear all
unnecessary objects from the kitchen countertops. If it hasn't been
used for three months... put it away! Clear refrigerator fronts of
messages, pictures, etc. (A sparse kitchen helps the buyer mentally
move their own things into your kitchen.) 3. In the bathroom,
remove any unnecessary items from countertops, tubs, shower stalls
and commode tops. Keep only your most needed cosmetics, brushes,
perfumes etc., in one small group on the counter. Coordinate towels
to one or two colors only. 4. Rearrange or remove some of the
furniture if necessary. As owners, many times we have too much
furniture in a room. This is wonderful for our own personal
enjoyment, but when it comes to selling we need to thin out as much
as possible to make rooms appear larger. 5. Take down or
rearrange certain pictures or objects on walls. Patch and paint if
necessary. 6. Review the inside of the house room by room,
and:

Paint any room needing paint.

Clean carpets or drapes that need it.

Clean windows.7. If you need room to store extra possessions
use the garage or rent a storage unit. 8. Leave on certain
lights during the day. During "showings" turn on all lights and
lamps. 9. Have stereo FM on during the day for all
viewings.

OUTSIDE:1. Go around the perimeter of
the house and move all garbage cans, discarded wood scraps, extra
building materials, etc., into the garage. 2. Check gutters for
roof moss and dry rot. Make sure they are swept and cleaned. 3.
Look at all plants... prune bushes and trees. Keep plants from
blocking windows. "YOU CAN'T SELL A HOUSE IF YOU CAN'T SEE IT."
Plants are like children -- they grow so fast!! 4. Weed and then
mulch all planting areas. Keep lawn freshly cut and fertilized.
Remove and dead plants or shrubs. 5. Clear patios or decks of
all small items. such as small planters, flower pots, charcoal,
barbecues, toys. etc. (Put them in the garage or a storage unit.)
6. Check paint condition of the house -- especially the front
door and trim. "CURB APPEAL REALLY WORKS!"

Barb Schwarz, ASP®, ASPM®, AB, IAHSP®
The Creator of Home Staging®
CEO www.Stagedhomes.com
IAHSP® Founder and Chairwoman of The Board of The International Association of Home Staging Professionals® and Foundation www.iahsp.com
Stage®, ASP®, ASPM®, IAHSP® and Stagedhomes.com® are Federally Registered Trademarks of StagedHomes.com®.